Thursday, November 29, 2012

What I'm Reading for Book Clubs

Nothing forces you to slow down like a bout of the flu, and our house has been hit hard this week.

With all the resting, cuddling, and general convalescing going on, I've had lots of time to catch up on my reading.

Don't get me wrong- I'm an avid reader at any time, but for the past few days, I've been steeped in books (reading both mine and the kids'), so I thought I'd share some of what I've been reading over the last few months.

I've always wanted to be part of a book club, but it wasn't till recently that I got the opportunity, when I joined not one, but two book clubs in short order. The first is a classical online book club, organized by Edie at Life in Grace.

I used the word "joined" loosely here, because although I've been doing the reading and following along with the discussion... I don't actually participate in said discussion. Apparently, I'm as much of a wallflower in virtual gatherings as I am in real-life gatherings. So far, I've read (and loved) The Odyssey, Antigone, and I'm picking away at Plato's Republic. These are not quick reads, but I try to squeeze in a few pages every night.

One of my oldest and dearest friends started a real-life book club several months ago, and I jumped at the chance to join. Coffee, grown-up conversation, books, and snacks? Try and keep me away!

So far we've read:

"Angry Housewives Eating BonBons" by Lorna Landvik

Set in Minnesota, this was an appropriate choice for our little club, as it focuses on a group of women who meet for (what else?) good coffee, delectable desserts, books, and laughter.

"Let's Pretend This Never Happened" by Jenny Lawson

There were definitely some hilarious moments in this book (to the point where I didn't read it in public for fear of being the crazy, snort-laughing, shoulders-shaking-with-suppressed-laughter lady). But I don't know that I would recommend the book to someone who wasn't already a fan of Lawson's blog. Read the blog first; if you love her, then read the book.

This month, we are reading "MWF Seeking BFF" by Rachel Bertsche. I'm almost halfway done with it, and so far, so good.

Newly-wed and newly transplanted to the Midwest, Bertsche documents her yearlong search for a BFF. I have to admit to being a bit prejudiced against this book going in because it seemed like the type of fluffy chick-lit that I avoid (actually, you could say that about most of our selections) but I like it more than I expected, and it should lead to an interesting discussion on the role and importance of female friendships at our next meeting.

I was going to include what I'm reading on my own, but that would make this post awfully long and it's already past my bedtime! I think this will have to be a two-part post. I'm always looking for good book recommendations though, so please comment away! Have you read any thing good lately? Do you have any old favorites you love to re-read? I'll share mine in the next post.

6 comments:

Fun! I love to read. Have you been to 5minutesforbooks.com-It's a blog about books. Once a month, they host a linky party where you link posts like this on what you've read-you should check it out! I usually try to link up, but I miss sometimes.